Parting ways
On the second day, Zhu Yu wanted to find an opportunity to tell Bai Miaoke his true identity alone and ask about his aunt, but he never found the chance.
He said he wanted to go find some food with Bai Miaoke, but her husband kept saying that his wound hurt and wouldn't let her go.
He asked A Ling to change the medicine for his cousin's useless husband, and he wanted to take the opportunity to chat with Bai Miaoke for a while, but her husband turned pale and held her hand tightly.
Zhu Yu tried every possible means to find a chance to be alone with his cousin the whole morning, but failed. His face, which was always smiling, became darker and darker.
On the contrary, Lu Yu's face, which was too pale due to injury, looked more like a spring breeze.
Nearing noon, Bai Miaoke suggested that everyone split up to explore the route.
"Staying here all the time is really not a solution. I'll go with you." Zhu Yu responded immediately. This was a perfect opportunity to find relatives.
Before Bai Miaoke could respond, she heard Lu Yu speak again.
"My dear, my wound still hurts a lot. I still need your support when I walk."
Zhu Yu was furious: "If your wound hurts, don't go. Just wait here."
Bai Miaoke also thought this was true. Just as she was about to nod, she saw Lu Yu staring at her with a lonely and lost look. She turned around and thought about it, and felt that it was indeed not safe for him to stay here alone.
So Bai Miaoke compromised and said, "It's more efficient if we work in pairs. I'd better support my husband."
As soon as she finished speaking, her husband, who had difficulty walking, took two steps at a time and took her arm.
Zhu Yu's mouth twitched. He was now certain that his cousin had been deceived by the man's hypocritical appearance. He was a scheming green tea man. He cursed the man again and again in his heart. Although he was indignant, he couldn't tell his cousin about this now. He could only find another opportunity.
What he didn't know was that, let alone finding another opportunity, after this farewell, he would never be able to find the person again.
As the two groups separated, Lu Yu directly pointed Bai Miaoke to a path leading to the nearest village.
"How do you know the way?" Bai Miaoke was a little surprised.
"Before leaving the capital, I memorized all the routes I might take along the way." Lu Yu said in a flat tone, as if this matter was as simple as drinking water and eating.
Bai Miaoke, who has a poor sense of direction, admired this very much. She had heard that the prime minister had a photographic memory, but she didn't expect that he was so good at remembering directions.
She hesitated again and said, "What about Zhu Yu and the others?"
Hearing that she was still thinking about another man, Lu Yu's lips, which had just been raised, fell back again, and she comforted herself: Don't blame Ke'er, it's all that scheming man's fault, but we will never meet again.
Thinking of this, he put away the gloom in his heart and said, "The two of them have unknown origins and should not have been on the same road. This is a good opportunity to go their separate ways."
After saying that, he was worried that Bai Miaoke would think he was too heartless, so he added, "Once the matter is resolved, I'll find them and give them some gifts to repay their kindness in saving me this time."
Bai Miaoke nodded, feeling that it was rare for Lu Yu to agree with her. Even though these two had helped them a lot in recent days, all these coincidences were still very suspicious, so it would be best to just say goodbye.
After reaching an agreement, the two entered the small village.
In the farmland beside the road, several people were harvesting crops, and on the ridge of the field, a group of children were chasing and playing. When they saw the two strangers passing by, they all cast curious glances at them.
Bai Miaoke asked in a low voice: "What village is this?"
"Niujia Village."
"Then where should we stay? It doesn't look like there is an inn here." It's not that Bai Miaoke looks down on this place, but the few farmhouses scattered in the village can almost be seen from one end to the other.
There is no sign of an inn.
Hearing this question, Lu Yu was a little stunned. He didn't expect that this village was so... simple.
He thought for a moment before speaking: "I can only find someone to stay with for one night."
"This is the only way." Bai Miaoke nodded, and then started chatting with a peasant woman carrying a bucket of clothes.
"Sister, my husband and I are going to visit relatives in town. Can I stay here for one night?"
The woman saw that both of them were wearing fine silk clothes, but the bloodstains on the clothes that could not be washed out were very horrifying. She turned pale and waved her hands repeatedly, fearing that she would get into trouble.
"Sister, we can pay you and stay for one night. We will leave tomorrow morning." Bai Miaoke saw the embarrassment and hesitation on the woman's face, but did not realize that it was the blood on her and Lu Yu's bodies that scared her.
When she heard them offering money, the woman hesitated for a moment and then refused: "Sister, my family really doesn't have any extra room to stay. You can ask someone else."
After saying that, he picked up the basket and left quickly.
Although the attempt was unsuccessful, Bai Miaoke did not get discouraged. She took Lu Yu to ask a few villagers working on the roadside, but they all rejected her.
Now she was really in trouble.
"It's because of the bloodstains on our bodies." Lu Yu said.
Bai Miaoke suddenly realized that she was used to seeing blood and didn't think there was anything wrong with having a little blood on her body, but she forgot that these farmers who had worked in the fields all their lives might never have seen such a scene.
She was a little embarrassed: "This clothes has been washed, and it is really impossible to wash it clean. Do I have to buy clothes first before I can have a place to live?"
"No need." Lu Yu reached out and pulled out two strands of Bai Miaoke's hair, which she had meticulously groomed by the water this morning. He then rubbed her eyes until the girl's eyes turned red before he withdrew his hand.
"Let's go. Listen to me."
Bai Miaoke didn't quite understand what he wanted to do, but she still cooperated with him and continued walking into the village.
Before they left, they came across a house with its door open. A woman in her thirties or forties was sitting in the yard picking vegetables. When she saw them passing by, she looked at them curiously.
Lu Yu led Bai Miaoke to stop outside their open courtyard door, and politely knocked on the door twice before asking, "Hello, my wife and I encountered bandits on the way to visit relatives. We finally escaped and have nowhere to go. I wonder if you can stay with us for one night."
Upon hearing this, Bai Miaoke understood what he meant, and cooperated by pretending to be frightened, covering her face with her sleeves to wipe away her non-existent tears.
The woman saw the blood stains on the two men and the woman's messy hair. As a woman herself, she couldn't help but feel sympathy and said, "Wait a minute, I'll go ask the head of the family."
"It's my duty." Lu Yu nodded.
Then the woman put down the work in her hands and turned back into the house.
The two of them waited at the door, and Bai Miaoke couldn't help but ask, "Will she let us stay here?"
"Yes." Lu Yu replied.
"But she should listen to her man, what if he doesn't agree?" Bai Miaoke didn't know why he was so sure.
"In ordinary people's homes, men are said to be the head of the family, but in reality it is usually the women who have the final say."
"This is the first time I've heard this. From this perspective, it's not bad to be a common couple in an ordinary village." Bai Miaoke sighed.
Lu Yu tilted his head and looked at her thoughtfully.
While the two were talking, the woman and her husband came out of the house.
"My wife has already told you about your situation. If you don't mind, you can stay in the west room." The man was wearing coarse cloth clothes with his sleeves rolled up, and he looked very strong.
"We haven't even started to express our gratitude for taking you in, so how could we despise you?" Lu Yu said with a bow.
Bai Miaoke didn't say anything, but just looked around the man's muscular body and the calluses on his knuckles calmly.
After the matter was settled, the woman took the two men to the west room.
Pushing open the door of this western room, you will see an earthen kang and an old, dusty cabinet. In the corner behind the door, there are some farm tools such as iron shovels and iron shovels.
The woman rubbed her hands embarrassedly and took out a set of bedding from the cupboard. The bright red mandarin duck quilt cover had become a little pale after washing, but it exuded a fresh soapberry scent.
"This bedding was just washed a few days ago. It's clean. Don't mind if you reject it." The woman put the bedding on the bed and wanted to make it for them.
Bai Miaoke quickly took over, "Sister, I can do it. Thank you so much."
The woman then stopped and said a few polite words to the couple, asking them not to be polite and what they would like to eat in the evening. Then she left the room, not forgetting to close the door for the couple.
Having only one quilt meant that the two of them would have to sleep together at night. Bai Miaoke pursed her lips a little embarrassedly and put the quilt in her hands on the kang, but she didn't know how to start.
The eldest daughter of the richest man who was brought up in pampering, there were many things she had never done, such as making her bed.
She hesitated for a moment, and Lu Yu, who was leaning on the side, stood up by the edge of the kang: "Let me do it."
Bai Miaoke looked at his wound, which was bleeding from walking all the way, and waved her hand, saying, "You should just sit down. Just tell me how to lay the bed."
Lu Yu did not try to be brave anymore. He sat down again, covering his wound with his hands, and pointed at one of the quilts: "This one is at the bottom. The other one is for night use, so don't worry about it."
The words are concise and to the point, Bai Miaoke understands them clearly, but when it is laid out, it is wrinkled and barely slept on.
After finally cleaning up, Bai Miaoke lay down on the freshly made bedding, wishing she could fall asleep immediately.
But it wasn't even dark yet, and she suddenly remembered something and asked, "By the way, do you have any money?"
"No, they are all with Fugui." Lu Yu said in a flat tone.
"That's it. I only have ten taels of silver on me. How can that be enough?" Bai Miaoke regretted not bringing more cash. She did have a token of the Bai family's bank, so she could withdraw as much as she wanted, but there was no bank in this village.
"That's enough." Prime Minister Lu, who obviously understood the lives of the lower classes and prices better, spoke calmly.
Bai Miaoke curled her lips, knowing that was enough, and she had to live frugally until she could get out of this predicament.
Thinking of this, she missed Chun Xing again: "I wonder how Chun Xing and the others are doing? Their target is you, and if you are missing, it shouldn't be a problem for the others, right?"
Lu Yu was silent for a while before saying, "Your maid is definitely fine, but it's hard to say about Fugui and the others. Even torture is fine."
Bai Miaoke thought of those taciturn guards. Even though she hadn't been with them for a few days, she felt a little sorry for them.
She sat down next to Lu Yu and patted his back soothingly, and they sat in silence for a while.
As dusk fell, the already poorly lit room quickly became dark, and it was so dim that one could barely see each other's faces.
Bai Miaoke and Lu Yu stared at each other in the dark. The atmosphere was a little ambiguous for a moment. It was unclear who approached first, and the distance between them was getting closer and closer.
One of them tilted his head, the other leaned forward, their eyes met and then slowly closed, their soft lips close to each other as their breaths intertwined.
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